Police say an argument between a man and his girlfriend led to murder and a standoff with police last week at a home they shared in Pinellas Park.

According to authorities, Thomas Lee Owens II and Nellie Collins began arguing last Tuesday evening after Owens retrieved a handgun he owned. They say his sister Tracy Starks attempted to calm the 52-year-old in the living room of their home, but her efforts were in vain. Owens allegedly shot and mortally wounded the 59-year-old Collins, then leveled the pistol at his 49-year-old sister and threatened to do the same to her.

Starks told police that she fled the residence and reported the situation from a neighbor’s home.

Upon their arrival, Pinellas Park Police say they encountered Owens sitting on his porch, firearm in hand. They indicate that he initially refused to relinquish the firearm, but officers were eventually able to convince him to disarm and be taken into custody. They say they discovered Collins’ body in the living room upon a subsequent search of the residence.

Collins was booked into the Pinellas County Jail shortly after midnight the next morning on one count of second-degree murder, a count of aggravated assault, and a count of felon in possession of a firearm. He’s currently being held in lieu of a $620,000 bond.